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Summary content

PURPOSE: to improve the proper functioning of the
internal market and remove and prevent barriers for the free
movement of accessible products and services, including for
disabled people.

PROPOSED ACT: Directive of the European Parliament and
of the Council.

ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: the European
Parliament decides in accordance with the ordinary legislative
procedure and on an equal footing with Council.

BACKGROUND: the Commission notes that the demand
for accessible products and services is high and the number of
citizens with disabilities and/or functional limitations will
increase significantly with the ageing of the European Union's
population. Taking into account demographic ageing, it is
expected that in 2020 approximately 120 million persons in the
European Union will have multiple and/or minor disabilities. An
environment where products and services are more accessible allows
for more inclusion and facilitates autonomy.

Accessibility is at the heart of the United Nations
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, to which
the EU is a party together with 25 of its Member States. It is one
of the priorities of the European
Disability Strategy 2010-2020 that sets actions for the
implementation of the UNCRPD at EU level. Accessibility prevents or
removes barriers to the use of mainstream products and services. It
allows the perception, operation and understanding of those
products and services by persons with functional limitations, on an
equal basis with others.

Differences in legislation, standards and guidelines
on accessibility existand are very
likely to increase as Member States develop new accessibility
rules. National authorities, manufacturers and service providers
face uncertainties concerning the accessibility requirements for
potential cross-border services, and concerning the policy
framework applicable for accessibility. Harmonisation of
national measures on accessibility is being proposed as a
necessary condition to put an end to the legislative
divergence.

IMPACT ASSESSMENT: a preliminary screening showed that
this EU initiative should only cover selected priority
areas, where obstacles to the functioning of the single market
were most visible and likely to increase or where action at
European level would add more value. Regulatory intervention
appeared to be the most efficient form of EU intervention for
tackling current and expected problems in the functioning of the
single market.

CONTENT: the proposed Directive will provide for a
common EU definition and implementation framework for
accessibility requirements of certain products and services, so
that the latter might benefit from free circulation on the internal
market and ensure the full participation of persons with
disabilities in society.

The proposal is complementary to existing EU
law addressing assistance to persons with disabilities or with
reduced mobility like the regulation of passenger rights in all
modes of transport (air, rail, waterborne, bus and coach). It also
complements the
proposal for a web accessibility Directive that covers in its
scope only certain public sector websites.

The main aspects of the proposal are as
follows:

Scope:the proposed
directive aims to:

harmonise accessibility requirements for a list of
products and services, selected on
the basis of the needs of industry and people with disabilities. It
concerns particularly transport ticket machines and check-in
machines, banking services, consumer terminal equipment, telephony
and audio visual services, passenger transport services, e-books
and e-commerce;

use the same accessibility requirements to define and
give content to the  already existing, but undefined 
obligation of accessibilitylaid down
in EU law, such as in the area of public procurement and the
structural and investment Funds.

Accessibility requirements and free
movement: the proposed Directive
ensures that all products and services complying with the
accessibility requirements will benefit from free circulation on
the internal market. It supports industry to address accessibility
issues by using the same functional accessibility requirements to
render operational the obligation to buy/fund accessible products
and services as laid down in EU law.

In line with the 'think small first' principle,
light conformity assessment and safeguard clauses are
introduced to protect economic operators from carrying a
disproportionate burden or avoiding (the costs imposed by) the
fundamental alteration of their products and services

Implementation by Member States: the proposed directive:

harmonises accessibility requirements at EU level for
a number of products and services but does not prescribe in
detail how the obligation to render a product or service
accessible by complying with the defined accessibility
requirements has to be achieved in practice. In case this still
leads to obstacles in the internal market, the Commission can
consider other options in the future to provide guidance to Member
States such as standardisation or implementing
measures;

includes the option of using voluntary harmonised
standards to provide presumption of conformity with the
accessibility requirements;

provides that Member States must transpose the
Directive within two years after its entry into force at the
latest;

requires Member States to apply all measures, within
six years after the entry into force of the Directive.

BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS: the proposal has very limited
budgetary implications. The only operational costs relate to the
preparation of the report on the application of this Directive,
i.e. operational appropriation of EUR 0.2 million under the
existing budget line, as well as administrative expenditure of
around EUR 0.182 million per year after the adoption of the
Directive for running the related committee meetings. This
expenditure will be borne by internal redeployment and not entail
an increase in funds.